This ground-dwelling bird from Australia can mimic just about anything it hears, including the sound of camera shutters and chainsaws. Wow! What will Nature think of next?
(via Pharyngula at Scienceblogs.com)
Tags : Conservation group discovers rare bird breeding site in Afghanistan
World Conservation Society researchers have located the breeding ground for what's been called "the world's least known bird species". The large-billed reed warbler (seen here) was first identified in India in 1867, and another not seen again until 139 years later. Now WCS researchers have found the rare bird's breeding area in a remote mountain region of Afghanistan. Read more about it on the WCS website.
Carolina Parakeet: A photo of a Carolina Parakeet researchers named "Coqueta" now living in captivity in Honduras.
Courtesy John Heldee, Cornell UniversityHuge news in the bird world today as the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology announced the re-discovery of a small isolated population of the "extinct" Carolina parakeet. This news comes hot on the heels of an announcement this month by National Geographic that another extinct species the Worchesters Buttonquail was photographed.
The news from Cornell, as detailed in this press release is a far greater story. The Carolina Parakeet was the only member of the parrot family found in the United States. It was thought they were extinct but a small non-migratory population was found in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve in the Mosquitia region of northeastern Honduras.
Full details will come out in an article in Science magazine this month but lead researcher Hubin Tubbs has said, "The bird we currently have in captivity, the individuals we have seen in the wild and the male we are tracking through telemetry are absolutely the Carolina Parakeet. We know from historical data that the Carolina Parakeet was migratory to this general region. There must have been individuals that did not migrate and they have formed a small but viable non-migratory population all this time."
Bald eagle: Photo US Geologic Survey
Ed Contoski has a problem. He wants to sell some of his land in central Minnesota. But a pair of bald eagles are nesting there. The eagles are listed as endangered species by the Fish and Wildlife Service, so the land cannot be developed. Which means no one's going to want to buy it.
The thing is, the bald eagle has recovered pretty nicely in the wild. In the last 40 years, the population has grown from under 500 nesting pairs to over 9,000. President Clinton asked the Fish and Wildlife Service to de-list the eagle in 1999, but they never got around to it. Contoski sued, and the judge ordered FWS to de-list the eagle by February 16, 2007. Recently, FWS asked for more time, and the judge extended the deadline to June 29.
Some people think that FWS, under pressure from environmental groups, is using the Endangered Species Act to stop development, and unfairly deprive a citizen of the use of his land. Others say a decision this important should not be rushed. What do you think? Leave a comment.
For the next four days--February 16 through 19--birdwatchers of all abilities and ages are identifying and counting birds throughout North America. The Great Backyard Bird Count is going on right now, and it's free, easy, takes as little as 15 minutes, and helps the birds.
According to the GBBC website:
"Scientists and bird enthusiasts can learn a lot by knowing where the birds are. Bird populations are dynamic; they are constantly in flux. No single scientist or team of scientists could hope to document the complex distribution and movements of so many species in such a short time.
We need your help. Make sure the birds from your community are well represented in the count. It doesn't matter whether you report the 5 species coming to your backyard feeder or the 75 species you see during a day's outing to a wildlife refuge.
Your counts can help us answer many questions:
How will this winter's snow and cold temperatures influence bird populations? Where are winter finches and other “irruptive” species that appear in large numbers during some years but not others? How will the timing of birds’ migrations compare with past years? How are bird diseases, such as West Nile virus, affecting birds in different regions? What kinds of differences in bird diversity are apparent in cities versus suburban, rural, and natural areas? Are any birds undergoing worrisome declines that point to the need for conservation attention? Scientists use the counts, along with observations from other citizen-science projects, such as the Christmas Bird Count, Project FeederWatch, and eBird, to give us an immense picture of our winter birds. Each year that these data are collected makes them more meaningful and allows scientists to investigate far-reaching questions."
Don't know anything about birds? That's OK. The folks at Great Backyard Bird Count can teach you all you need to know. (They have lots of fun games and activities, too.)
Results of the bird count are constantly being updated. See what's going on in your neck of the woods!
A bright yellow and red-crowned Yariguies brush-finch has been discovered in Columbia's Andean cloud forest.
This series of photos, taken over 24 days, shows a hummingbird hatching and leaving its nest. (Click through all 5 pages for the full series.) Cool!
Updates on Athena and her family from the High Bridge Power Plant
Vote now for your favorite falcon name! (2007) - 6/20/2007
Athena's eggs have all hatched (2007) - 6/1/2007
Eggwatch 2007 - 4/16/2007
Athena's laid her first egg of the year!
2007 Falcon Sightings - 03/06/2007
Athena has returned to the nest box.
Athena's eggs are hatching - 05/02/2006
Athena's four eggs hatched in the begining of May, 2006.
First falcon sighting of 2006 - 01/26/2006
Athena is seen returning to the High Bridge nest in January, 2006.
The sad story of Athena and Smoke - 04/06/2005
How Athena came to the High Bridge nest and the loss of her mate.
The rise and fall of peregrine falcons
Peregrine falcons are raptors—birds of prey. In particular, they eat other birds that they catch in the air. They can dive at speeds of over 200 miles per hour, making them the fastest animals on earth.
Peregrines were once found throughout North America, favoring rocky perches along coasts, rivers, and lakes. They prefer being near large bodies of water because the open water makes it difficult for birds to find cover from a diving peregrine.
Peregrine populations plummeted in the 1950s and ‘60s because the pesticide DDT caused the eggshells of peregrines and many other bird species to become so thin that adults crushed them while sitting on them. Bu 1968, only about 39 nesting pairs remained in the entire U.S. DDT was banned in the U.S. in 1972. As DDT levels decreased in the environment, the laying of abnormally thin eggshells diminished.
Xcel Energy High Bridge Generating Plant, St. Paul
But peregrines needed assistance to fully recover. As part of an overall energy strategy to reintroduce peregrines to their former ranges, NSP (now Xcel Energy) and the Raptor Resource Project initiated the power plant nesting project in 1989, when the Allen S. King Plant on the St. Croix River became the first power plant in the U.S. to provide a nest box for peregrines. Power plant nest boxes are largely responsible for returning the peregrine falcon to its rightful place on the bluffs of the Mississippi River.
Over 2,000 pairs of peregrines are now nesting in North America. Because of this spectacular recovery, the peregrine has been taken off the federal government’s endangered species list. Peregrines now are beginning to expand from power plant next boxes to their former nesting habitats of cliffs and bluffs.
Between 1989 and 2000, 114 young peregrines have fledged from nest boxes located on the stacks of seven Xcel Energy power plants. Nest boxes exist on the stack of other power companies as well as on a few commercial office buildings.
Peregrine falcons can be aggressive to window washers, air conditioning repair people, and people just sitting on their balconies. For this reason, many falcon enthusiasts are beginning to pull nest boxes from office buildings and residential high rises.
Rufous Hummingbird: Courtesy National Park Service
Researchers working in the Canadian Rockies have reported Rufous hummingbirds (Selasphorus rufus) exhibiting some interesting characteristics. T. Andrew Hurly, University of Lethbridge in Alberta, suggests Rufous Hummingbirds have an episodic memory recalling flower location as well as determining when nectar supplies will be replenished. Episodic memory is the ability to associate where and when events will reoccur, such as a flower’s nectar replenishment.
How did Hurly and colleagues test the hummingbirds? As described in the March 7th edition of Current Biology, the researchers specifically tracked Rufous Hummingbirds in their native mountainous habitat. They investigated the hummingbirds by constructing artificial flowers made from syringe tips surrounded by cardboard discs. Artificial flowers were placed in the hummingbird’s natural habitat and restocked with a sugar solution in timed intervals. Half the syringes were filled ten minutes after the male hummingbird drank and the other half were refilled after twenty minutes. Researchers observed the hummingbirds visited appropriate flowers corresponding with time intervals-ten minutes for quickly refilled flowers and twenty minutes for the slower refills.
Why not consider becoming a bird-bander or net runner at Lee and Rose Warner Nature Center? Join us for a Bird-Banding Volunteer Open House! Learn about this special volunteer program at Warner in person and see if it's for you. Banders are responsible for setting up mist-nets, regularly checking them to carefully remove ensnared birds, taking nets down and assisting in the bird-banding process. Typically, a Warner “primary bander” delivers a 30-minute program on banding to school program groups while banding captured birds. Net runners assist with bird retrieval and data entry. A love of birds, the outside, and being around children is useful. No banding experience is necessary, but a willingness to learn and ability to hike through the woods is required.
- Registration: Call 651-433-2427 to register. Registration is required.
- Cost: No fee. Refreshments will be provided.
- When: Saturday, May 13, 2006 from 9:00-10:30 a.m.
- Where: Warner Nature Center (feel free to call for directions).
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